John Crown (Independent)

I welcome the Minister. I am sorry if it sometimes seems like I am trying to make very profound statements from these poor, Independent, academic benches, but the Minister and his ministerial colleagues who have responsibility for energy and water policy have the most important Departments. Long after the penny drops that our future as a species is not wrapped up in things like the embassy to the Vatican, 1916 Rising commemorations, NAMA and real estate prices, it will be realised that our failure or success will depend on whether we can feed and water ourselves and have sufficient energy to carry out our activities.